'Pokemon Go' is banning cheaters for life
Niantic, the development studio behind the wildly popular augmented reality smartphone game, now says that anyone found cheating will be hit with a permanent ban.
As The Verge reports, it recently updated its terms of service warning that users who try to manipulate the app will be booted off for life. This, it says, can include: "Falsifying your location, using emulators, modified or unofficial software and/or accessing Pokémon GO clients or backends in an unauthorized manner including through the use of third party software."
Some users have been experimenting with ways to trick the app into believing they're in a false location. This could be used to get region-specific pokémon - or just so the player doesn't have to exert themselves walking in reality. There have been similar attempts to trick the game to confer other benefits on the user. But if Niantic catches you trying this, then wave goodbye to all your ill-gotten Drowzees.
"Our goal is to provide a fair, fun and legitimate game experience for everyone," Niantic says. "We will continue to work with all of you to improve the quality of the gameplay, including ongoing optimization and fine tuning of our anti-cheat system."
The company is also offering an appeals process, for people who feel they have been banned incorrectly.
Here's the full FAQ entry from Niantic on bans for cheating, and how to appeal them:
Submit a ban appeal
Your account was permanently terminated for violations of the Pokémon GO Terms of Service. This includes, but is not limited to: falsifying your location, using emulators, modified or unofficial software and/or accessing Pokémon GO clients or backends in an unauthorized manner including through the use of third party software.
Our goal is to provide a fair, fun and legitimate game experience for everyone. We will continue to work with all of you to improve the quality of the gameplay, including ongoing optimization and fine tuning of our anti-cheat system. If you believe your account has been terminated in error incorrectly, you can appeal that termination through this form. For privacy reasons, please do not post appeals on social media.